Robert "Bob" Hurst's 2013 album
Bob: A Palindrome follows up the bassist's 2010 studio album Bob Ya Head. Recorded in 2001, the album's release was delayed by 9/11, as well as
Hurst's own busy career as a highly sought-after sideman and professor of music at the University of Michigan. Joining
Hurst here are such longtime associates as saxophonist
Branford Marsalis, drummer
Jeff "Tain" Watts, trumpeter
Marcus Belgrave, flutist and bass clarinetist
Bennie Maupin, pianist
Robert Glasper, and percussionist
Adam Rudolph. With all the songs composed and arranged by
Hurst, including the epic mid-album
Duke Ellington-style three-part "Middle Passage Suite,"
Bob: A Palindrome is a superb showcase for
Hurst's improvisational skill, songwriting ability, and talent for assembling an all-star band. This is urbane, highly creative, and straight-ahead modern jazz at its finest. ~ Matt Collar